Coming Home
by Caryl2013
Summary: This is a one-shot Caryl fic I've decided to do that picks up after the most recent episode in Season 4 titled, Indifference. This is my version of what "might" (more than likely not though) happen between Carol and Daryl.


_Hello everyone. I don't usually stop in the middle of other stories to start another, but last week's episode nearly destroyed me. I'm working on getting back to my other story, but first I had to work through some things in my head and this is what happened as a result. This is of course my first time doing a one-shot, so I hope it's not too terribly awful. My heart just aches so badly for Carol and even though I know it's a long-shot, I would love for Daryl to rescue her and everything to be wonderful, but this is The Walking Dead and Kirkman is twisted. Anyway, here it is and it picks up after the most recent episode: Indifference. Thanks for reading and I would love to hear your thoughts._

_***I do not own The Walking Dead or any of its characters***_

* * *

Daryl sat in a stunned silence as he listened to Rick explain to the group that Carol wasn't coming back. Rick kept throwing several glances his way, but so far Daryl had been quiet. His brain was still trying to process exactly what it was that Rick was telling him. Rick_,_ his_ brother _for all intensive purposes_,_ had taken it upon himself to banish Carol from the group. Daryl just couldn't wrap his head around the fact that Carol was gone. Several members of the group started talking all at once, but Daryl was still leaning against the wall in the exact same position he had been in when Rick had gathered them together to talk. Rick was _still _talking in fact, but Daryl was no longer hearing anything that was being said. Carol was out there. _Alone_. Because of _Rick_.

Daryl stood up straight and turned for the exit when Rick called his name. Daryl stopped and waited until Rick stopped in front of him. "How could ya jus' leave 'er like that?" Daryl asked.

"She _killed_ them Daryl. She killed Karen _and_ David," Rick emphasized.

Daryl shook his head in disbelief. _No, that wasn't possible. Not the Carol he knew._ "Ya got proof?" Daryl asked.

Rick ran a hand through his hair, "She told me so. She confessed to it all. I don't even think she was remorseful. She's changed Daryl," Rick explained.

Daryl scoffed, "So ya banished 'er cause she told ya she did it?" Daryl could feel himself growing angrier by the minute. He leaned forward until his face was mere inches from Rick's, "Tell me somethin' Rick," His voice came out deadly quiet. "How ya figure you get ta be tha one ta make decisions like that now without consultin' tha rest o' us?"

Several members of the group were now looking in their direction, but Daryl didn't care. To Rick's credit, he didn't back down from Daryl, but he didn't look too upset about it either and that was further pissing Daryl off.

"I couldn't bring her back here like that. My _kids_ are here," Rick whispered firmly.

"Bullshit!" Daryl swore loudly. "Tha same kids that Carol busted 'er ass takin' care of when ya lost Lori? Them kids, Rick?" Daryl's voice raised an octave.

Rick finally took a step backwards and looked down at the floor before replying, "I haven't forgotten about that. I took all that into consideration before I made the call," Rick said.

Daryl sneered at him and then looked at the faces of the group who were openly watching them, "So all y'all okay with this? Y'all okay with Rick jus' kickin' people out tha group without our knowledge? Leavin' 'er out there ta _die_?" Daryl spat the last question at Rick who regarded him solemnly. Nobody answered Daryl and Daryl clenched his jaw and nodded before turning to leave again. "I'm outta here," He muttered.

Rick grabbed his arm and Daryl immediately stiffened beneath his friend's grasp. "Where are you going?" Rick asked before dropping his grip on Daryl's arm.

Daryl didn't turn around to reply, "I'm goin' ta find 'er. Where ya think I'm goin'?" He asked stiffly.

"Are you coming back?" Rick asked softly.

Daryl could hear the pain laced in his friend's voice, but he couldn't bring himself to care at the moment. "Ain't decided yet," Daryl replied.

"Daryl?" Rick asked again.

This time Daryl glanced at Rick and their eyes locked. In them he saw a flash of the man that he had come to trust and respect and care for like his own brother. It wasn't enough to quell the pain though. "Yeah?" Daryl replied.

"She's driving a tan station wagon. License plate number 540XD3," Rick quietly replied.

Daryl nodded once and then walked out of the prison for what might be the last time.

* * *

Carol drove down the highway for a bit, unsure of where she should go being that she was completely on her own now. It didn't bother her that she was alone. She felt like she could more than take care of herself now. No, what bothered Carol was the fact that she wasn't going to see the people she cared about anymore. Glenn, Hershel, Sasha, Tyreese, Maggie, Judith, Lizzie, Mika, Carl, Beth, and _Daryl_. She didn't include Rick in that thought not because she didn't care about Rick anymore, but because she wasn't sure she knew who he was anymore. Daryl was perhaps the hardest one to swallow of them all. He had been her rock, her best friend, her _everything_.

Her hands shook slightly at that thought and she swerved a little to bring herself back onto the road. She couldn't afford to break down right now. Just like she kept telling the kids at the prison she had to remain strong if she was going to survive this world. So instead of crying like she really wanted to do, Carol forced all of her emotions inside and focused her attention back onto the road and finding a place to sleep for the night. She tried to remember everything that Daryl had taught her over the months about surviving while she drove. She hadn't gone that far from where she and Rick had been when they parted because she didn't have a map and she honestly didn't know what direction she should go.

She pulled over at a gas station on the side of the road some time later. Dusk was descending down upon the earth and she knew she would be running out of daylight soon. The gas station was old and off to itself, but it appeared to be abandoned. She decided that it would have to do for the night and she parked the car on the side of the building where it wouldn't be so obvious to anyone else that might happen by. The last thing she wanted was to run into the Governor while she was on her own. She briefly considered leaving the state, but then her mind drifted to Daryl and she knew she couldn't travel that far away from him. She wondered what he was doing at this moment and if he knew that she wasn't coming back. She didn't know how he would react and a part of her wished that he would come for her, but she wasn't holding out hope.

She unsheathed her knife from her side and exited the car. There were two walkers bumping into each other around the front of the building and she wanted to take them out as quickly as possible. Channeling Daryl, she crept up behind the first walker and rammed her knife into the back of its neck, up through the base of the skull. It dropped to the ground with a thud and she quickly walked to the next walker who's attention had been drawn to the activity around it. Dodging its hands, she ducked around behind it and repeated the action of ramming her knife into its skull. With both walkers taken care of, she made quick work of dragging their bodies off to the opposite side of the building. Pretty pleased with herself so far, she grabbed her backpack from the trunk of the car and clicked on her flashlight before entering the dim gas station.

She inwardly cringed as a bell that she hadn't spotted attached to the door jingled to announce her entrance. She waved her beam of light over dusty and bare shelves before coming to rest on a walker that had been sitting on the floor against the wall. It took her no time at all to take it out considering it was so weak that it was taking it a long time to get up from its position on the floor. With the inside now walker-free, she set her pack on the counter and worked on pushing a heavy shelf in front of the door for extra security. Carol grabbed a banner that was hung on the inside of the store and tore it down. Reaching into her pack she pulled out her roll of duct tape and taped the banner across the windows to help block out some of her light to others. Searching the shelves of the store, she came up with a can of beans, coffee filters, and two candy bars. She shrugged and stuffed them in her pack. She selected a can of Vienna sausage and popped the lid, eating it quickly to try and hold her over for the night. She took out her blanket and cleared a spot behind the counter to bed down at. The flame on her lantern was turned down as low as possible so that she could still see, but hopefully others couldn't see the light.

She tried to read a book that she found, but her thoughts were too jumbled to absorb anything. She came across a map behind the counter and she spread it out before her to try and figure out her next move. She stared at it for so long that her eyes began to blur and she glanced up to see that it was indeed getting dark outside now. Sighing, she lay down on the blanket and tried to ignore how quiet it was inside and how much she missed the others.

* * *

Daryl had had plenty of time to cool off and now that he had he was getting worried. He had no idea which way exactly Carol could have gone or even if she had left the area. He tried to put himself in her shoes, but it wasn't an easy task for him. With darkness quickly blanketing the earth, Daryl shifted gears on his bike and began looking for a place to crash for the night. The only problem was that he was on a road that was more or less deserted and he hadn't seen anything resembling shelter for a bit. He didn't relish the thought of spending the night in a tree even though he would if push came to shove. So he was relieved when he spotted the old, hopefully abandoned, building off to the side of the road and he immediately killed the engine and hopped off to guide the bike into the parking lot. So far he hadn't spotted any walkers in this area, but he wasn't letting down his guard.

He led the bike to the side of the building and stopped dead in his tracks. Sitting in front of him was a tan station wagon, license plate number 540XD3. There was no mistaking it; he had been repeating the number to himself over and over like it was a matter of life or death since he had started this mission. He stood there numbly for a few minutes and just stared at the car before he decided he needed to check the inside. Holding his breath his eyes scanned over the interior of the car, but Carol wasn't there. He shifted and grabbed his bow, keeping it ready in case he encountered any surprises. He crept to the front of the store and tried the door. It was locked or barricaded, but he couldn't tell which. He glanced behind him for any unwelcome visitors before pressing his face to the glass and knocking gently. He waited for the telltale sounds of walkers, but he heard nothing. Frowning, he reached into his pocket for his knife and pulled it out to try and pick the lock. He bent down and dropped his knife as he saw Carol's face staring back at him from the other side of the plate glass window. They stared at each other for several minutes before she disappeared from view. A few seconds later he heard her grunting and the sounds of something sliding across the floor before she unlocked the door and opened it for him to come inside.

He entered the store slowly, still not quite believing that somehow he had found her. He stood there silently as she locked the door back and pushed the shelf back in place. He followed her back behind the counter, neither of them saying anything. She sat down on a blanket that she had spread out on the floor and Daryl just watched her. She stared back at him silently.

Finally he swallowed and set his crossbow down on the counter, "I can't be-"

"I did it. It was me," Carol interrupted him quickly. "I killed Karen and David."

Daryl paused. Somehow or another, he had forgotten all about Rick saying that Carol had confessed to killing those people. He had been so focused on the fact that Rick had banished her from the group that it had consumed all of his thoughts. He crouched down until he was eye level with her and looked at her. She met his gaze and held it. He searched her eyes and in them he saw the hurt she tried to conceal and the strength she now possessed.

"You shouldn't have come. It's not safe to be out wandering around. You of all people should know that," She said.

"An' you of all people should know I ain't never played it safe," He responded. "I needed ta find ya. Had ta know ya were safe."

"Why? I'm a murderer. It doesn't really matter much, does it? I murdered two people and I would do it again if I had to," She said.

Daryl nodded. He could understand that. The world today was much different from the world that it was before all this had started. You couldn't afford to take chances anymore. You had to react to survive to see another day.

"You're not going to ask me why I did it?" Carol's voice cut through the silence softly.

Daryl shook his head and shrugged, "Wasn't gonna. Figured if ya did it, then there had ta be a good reason for it."

Carol laughed shakily and pressed her lips together, looking in the other direction away from his gaze, "Do they hate me?" Her voice shook slightly and Daryl had to swallow hard to keep from reaching for her.

That wasn't how they operated. Even though he had started developing stronger feelings for Carol, he hadn't ever made a move on her or shown her much affection. They had an understanding of sorts, a playful type of banter that they had developed over the course of the months. Daryl used it as an excuse to touch her or just to be near her. Through everything that they had been through, Carol had always stood by him, even when he had tried to push her away. He wanted to be there for her now, but he didn't know how she would react. So when she let out a muffled sob, he realized that he hadn't answered her question and she had assumed his silence for affirmation that the others hated her.

Without thinking he crawled across the blanket and pulled her to him, "It don't matter what they think. Didn't stick 'round ta find out," He said as she burrowed her head into his shoulder.

She didn't cry for very long and Daryl was relieved when she stopped. Something inside of him twisted painfully at her tears. She wiped her eyes with her shirt sleeve and sucked in a deep breath, "Sorry. I don't know what came over me. I've been doing so well up to this point. This is no time to be having a breakdown," She said.

Daryl frowned at her, "Ya takin' on too much. Ya not takin' care o' yerself like ya should," He told her.

She glanced over at him, "You have to sacrifice if you want t-"

"Bullshit!" Daryl cried suddenly. "Ya don't have ta take on all this on ya own! A person would go ape shit if they tried to tough this shit out alone. This world ain't cut out for one!" He was angry that she didn't seem to care about taking care of herself like he thought she should. She was always too busy taking care of everyone else and he was tired of it. She needed to make herself a priority.

Carol looked down at her hands, "In case you didn't notice Daryl, I've been banned from the group. I don't have anyone anymore."

Daryl scoffed, "Ya fuckin' got me! Hell, I'm here ain't I?" His voice rose a little higher, but he couldn't seem to help himself. He had so much frustration built up inside of him that it was boiling over onto everything else.

With slightly shaking hands, Daryl grabbed Carol by the face and pulled her lips to his firmly. He had absolutely no clue what he was doing, only that he needed to kiss her. He only hoped that she would feel the same. Her lips were slightly chapped beneath his, but warm and soft nonetheless. He wasn't really sure what in the hell he was doing so when she slipped her tongue into his mouth, he almost sighed in relief. She leaned into him as they kissed and it was the sweetest thing Daryl had ever tasted in his life. They clung to each other as if they would never see each other again and when they finally broke apart, they were both panting heavily. Daryl tilted his forehead forward until it touched hers and they leaned against each other, seeking comfort from one another quietly.

It was several minutes before Daryl broke the silence, "Ask me to stay," He whispered hoarsely.

Carol sucked in a breath and then reached up with her hands to cup his face, "Stay."

Daryl nodded and pulled her closer into his arms where she snuggled against him. It was calming yet terrifying all at the same time. He didn't know if they would ever make it back to the prison or see any of the others again, but at that moment he knew that as long as they had each other they would always be home.

"Always," Daryl whispered.


End file.
